The Labraventures of Carbón, Spanish (ex-) foster dog extraordinaire

Such a relief to know you have arrived safely after a long journey. Your apartment looks lovely, though do you have to climb over the bed to get to your desk! Very pleasant view of the cathedral spires. Sleep well both of you xx
 

Emily_Babbelhund

Mama Red HOT Pepper
How are things going @Emily_Babbelhund and of course Carbon x
I'll answer myself, because as usual Carbón is blissfully ignorant of all shenanigans.

First of all, I really like my new temporary apartment. I'm VERY grateful to have it and not have to worry about being in some not-so-nice place and can enjoy the Regensburg Old Town, which feels like home and I find it really so beautiful. I'm grateful that my father is healthy, that Carbón is Carbón (poo eating and all!), and that I have the support of wonderful friends when times get me down.

So...with all that said, I'm currently trying to deal with the renovation of my rental house in California. I've had what I thought was a good property management company and a good long-term tenant, recently departed to another city. I visited the house for the first time in 12 years when I was in San Jose and it is not a pretty sight. So much neglect. Working with my property manager is proving 'challenging' and the house has been empty for over a month, with no sign of work getting started. Of course it's a longer story than that and I'm not blameless either as I've never done a long-distance renovation and don't know the ins and outs, but suffice it to say it feels like a sack of bricks dragging me down to the ocean bottom. The owner of the property management company has offered to meet with me 1x1 next week, so I hope that will get us somewhere.

I have also reached the end of my rope of being 'homeless', in the sense of not having anywhere fixed to live (I am of course very grateful to have the resources to not be actually without a roof over my head). Many people say how they'd love to do what I do, but contrary to popular belief, I am not constantly on holiday and it can be nerve-wracking trying to perpetually figure out where to sleep each night while trying to work a job and take care of other normal tasks like getting proper medical care. Of course I love travel and the experiences I've had and wouldn't give them up - in fact I very much want to keep traveling - but darn if I don't want to have a least a tiny place that I can call home for more than a few months at a time as needed.

So there you go - I'm having a bit of an anxiety and existential crisis, but Carbón is happy and healthy, I'm healthy too, no one is ACTUALLY homeless, and I'll just keep trudging along with the mucky stuff for now in the hope that I can get it sorted soon. And if all else fails, I don't forget that my planned return to Cornwall is steadily inching closer! 😉
 

Emily_Babbelhund

Mama Red HOT Pepper
Sounds a bit shit Emily.
I always love your reactions, @Jacqui-S , as they match my own but with a more practical Scottish vibe than I'm not quite able to manage (but wish I could).

And from Englandshire. How about selling the American house and buying one in Europe, either a little bolt hole to return to, or one you can let out?
It would not be a good financial move to sell my California house (40% taxes on the change in value since I bought it), plus I could never afford to buy there again if I had to live there even temporarily, for example to take care of my father.

However I've already decided to first long-term rent or buy something quite small in Regensburg within the next year, and start look for something to buy in as-yet-unnamed coastal region 😉 this winter/spring. I've had it with being a 100% nomad and I can borrow against my California house to make that happen. It will take a while to get everything sorted because I'm SO slow to make any big decisions, but this is my plan.
 

Lisa

Moderator
Location
Alberta, Canada
This sounds like a good plan. It also sounds like you’ve got a year of planning and preparing which might be a bit stressful at times but will result in a load of stress being taken OFF your shoulders, so try to remember that when the going gets tough! That being said, I do hope it all falls into place smoothly! 🙏
 
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